Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw tossed a 40-pitch bullpen session today and is slated to throw a 60-pitch simulated game against live hitters later this week, writes J.P. Hoornstra of the L.A. News Group. There was talk of Kershaw making a pair of rehab starts, manager Dave Roberts tells Hoornstra, but that number has been dropped to one. Kershaw could head out on a minor league rehab assignment in the next week or two, Hoornstra writes. Kershaw himself said that he felt comfortable between simulated innings — a positive step from where he was prior to his placement on the DL. Hoornstra’s piece includes a series of video clips of Kershaw discussing his health and rehab, for those who wish to hear a first-hand account of his progress.

More from the NL West…

The Giants announced today that outfielder Gregor Blanco has been placed on the 15-day disabled list due to an impingement in his right shoulder. Blanco tells Henry Schulman of the San Francisco Chronicle that he initially injured his shoulder all the way back in May, but it’s become so painful that it’s even impacting his ability to run (links to Twitter). The second half of the season has been a tremendous struggle for Blanco, who is hitting just .130/.203/.148 in 59 plate appearances since the All-Star break.

In his latest Rockies mailbag, Patrick Saunders of the Denver Post addresses the reasons behind the Rockies’ decision to hang onto trade candidates Boone Logan and Jorge De La Rosa. There was plenty of interest in Logan, per Saunders, but GM Jeff Bridich elected to hold onto the southpaw because the Rockies were still within arm’s reach of the playoffs and were playing quite well. Saunders adds that he heard very little in the way of interest in De La Rosa, who has performed admirably since returning to the rotation earlier this summer. The 35-year-old De La Rosa has a 3.56 ERA over his past 13 starts (78 1/3 innings) and, like Logan, is a free agent at season’s end. Both left-handers are logical trade candidates over the final eight days of the month, now that the Rockies are out of the playoff picture.